LS7jUnKiE

iTrader: (5)

Hey guys, i drove to class today and all was well. An hour later i get outta class and the car BARLEY turns over to get the motor running. The gauges go nuts, and my battery volatge meter is reading less than 8volts (way down in the red)
anyway i drive back to my apartment all the while the ac not working and the "check gauges" light and the "abs inop" light on. I park in my spot and shut her down....take the key out, open the door, then put the key back in to start her up and she wont turn over she just CLICKS. The radio and everything is on but she wont turn over it just clickclickclickclick very rapidly. I called a buddy and he said his dad's TA had the same kind of problems and it was a couple of loose grounds. Im not sure if this is my problem, i dont think the battery is bad but im gonna try and boost her anyways. The clicking leads me to believe there to be a starter problem either with the solenoid or with the starter itself.....how can i test the starter from my parking spot with little tools and no jack? can I? please give me some feedback!

i posted in the repairs section and got nothing......

hotrod7687

I think its your battery. Worst case your alternator is going bad and has finally drained the battery. Take the battery to an auto zone or advance and have them test it. Most places will test it for free. If it is the battery, after you replace it, drive it to auto zone and have them test the alternator.

A dead battery can cause all of the things you just mentioned. I would defiantely start there.

Alt

iTrader: (6)

If you have a starter problem there is a possibility that you'd blow the 50A fuse under the hood and wouldn't have any dash lights or window operations. I would bet that your Alternator took a dump and the battery is finally dead.

TORCHD 02 TA

iTrader: (39)

before you buy a new alt and battery do youself a favor and check both your + and - battery terminals. Give them a good cleaing. Clean the posts and terminals themselves and make sure everyhting is connected nice and tight.


Then go from there

LS7jUnKiE

iTrader: (5)

hey guys a buddy and I jumped her and she fired right up....im assuming it was the battery. i checked the terminals when i first looked at her and they were spick and span. im gonna get a new optima red-top and then go test my alternator to make sure that is ok! thanks for the input guys.

LS7jUnKiE

iTrader: (5)

BUMP!! nevermind guys my buddy boosted me this morning and i tried to drive to go home and get a new battery cuz thats what i figured it was....well like 1 mile down the road the gauges start to go crazy, then another half mile or so and i lose all the gauges completley.....car is still running fine.....anyway i keep going along figuring maybe it was just a gauge fuse or something and then i get caught at a red lgiht.........and now the car starts to struggle to idle.....chugging and farting and burping.........so i chug and fart and burp my way into a 7eleven parking lot.....and now my dads on the way up with our trailer to trailer her back home......voltage regulator??? .........alternator??? the battery isnt dead cuz i turned the key to the "on" position and everything was normal, rolled my windows up...and left.

chuckyt1

iTrader: (33)

Check the ground wires on the back of the drivers side head. There are three of them and if one is broken, or loose, it will cause all kinds of problems. I know it will make the gauges go crazy, affect the starter and also the fuel pump.

Good Luck

SSOTRUE

Easy way to test your battery "I believe" (but not positive) is if you jump your car, disconnect your battery and your car still runs your alternator is fine, if it dies i'm pretty sure your alternator is junk since it cant stand on it's own power. Just my .02

87gnx

iTrader: (3)

SSo true, so close.This is the old school way to test your alt.(still works though).Disc the NEGATIVE side of the battery while car is running, if it quits after a min or so, its the alternator.

SSOTRUE

so-close! Anyhow thank you for the correction, now I know the correct way

LS7jUnKiE

iTrader: (5)

alright ill look into the alternator test, my dad got one of his mechanics on the way up with a new battery and a new alternator....so if it is one of those i will be good to go.

can i check those grounds easily? im not sure if my arm will fit back to the back of the drivers side head?!

chuckyt1

iTrader: (33)

Not really, you should be able to reach the higher bolt near the manifold. I think there are two wires on that one. See if you can feel for it. One of those wires might be broken, or loose.

You could turn the key on, then reach back there and move those wires around while someone watches the gauges. I don't remember exactly what the gauges do but there should be some sort of indication if that ground is bad. I know that the fuel pump will not run if one of those is broken so listen for the pump when you do this.

I broke one of these wires, over a year ago tho, and the starter would "click", the fuel pump was intermitent, and the gauges did goofy things...